331–340 of 483 posts
How about giving back money to people who paid back their loans, possibly going through even greater difficulties to do that.
Me me me! What about me!?
I know every European seems to ask this of every American but what is the resistance to a welfare state? if you look at a government as investing in its citizens like a VC fund, then providing education and medical care is sensible, and some will turn out fine and others will be Bezos and then you can get your investment back via tax. I am honestly trying to avoid the flame war here - but I do it know how else to fra…
Can never wrap my head around why America would forgive student debt and not medical debt, especially when the former is always a choice.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm curious to know how these loans became such a political issue. It's unusual to take out a loan and then complain about having to repay it. That's how it is supposed to work. We don't typically reward people for digging themselves into a hole by bailing them out. Unless they're large corporations. We bail them out in certain cases. But I don't think that's a popular idea either.
We do, actually, at least in the US. It's called bankruptcy. We generally recognize that sometimes despite best intentions, debts become unpayable and in these cases, the debts get restructured and creditors are frequently wiped out (which is fair, since both borrower and lender take risks). Student loans can't be discharged through bankruptcy unless the borrower is permanently disabled. It's entirely possible to end…
Now, the university will stop offering loans for worthless degrees, and they will only give you a loan for things they think you can actually succeed in, ensuring that there is huge incentive for everyone to ensure the student succeeds if they end up needing a loan.
Private cash payments can still be made to take whatever underwater basket weaving major you like, but you can’t go into debt for a degree that will bind you for the rest of your life.
It's crazy to cancel student loans and still keep issuing the exact same loans. If we believe the loans are unjust then the government should stop handing them out as the very first step.
I'm curious to know how these loans became such a political issue. It's unusual to take out a loan and then complain about having to repay it. That's how it is supposed to work. We don't typically reward people for digging themselves into a hole by bailing them out. Unless they're large corporations. We bail them out in certain cases. But I don't think that's a popular idea either.
- Interest rates have gone up
- Cost of schools have risen
- The government holds most student debt
- It is still usually a good deal to get an education, but the deal is rapidly becoming less of one (the value of the deal is even changing for people in the middle of education or even graduated)
- The clauses on the debt are getting stronger, being almost impossible to cancel the debt and leading to people never being able to pay off their loans.
- The loans are predatory and becoming more so (when I took mine out a decade ago I had the option to pick "fixed rate" or "variable" but that wasn't actually fixed _interest_ rate)
- Schools are promising scholarships and then not giving them (my school would constantly schedule me for meeting with the financial aid office, a requirement, the week after the deadline and wouldn't schedule me before)
- We're better understanding the major impact on our economy when a generation that is in their prime earnings age is still not consuming and instead paying off debt.
- An educated population results in a happy and effective civilization (especially if one of your main exports is technology)
I think there's a lot of good reasons that people are pissed off. Our generations specifically was told "go to college and you'll get a good job and have a stress free life." But we quickly found that going to college doesn't lead to a good job and we can't get the same things our parents did. Jobs are harder to get, they don't pay as much, and housing is insanely priced. So basically people are pissed about a lot of stuff and a whole messed up system, and most young people are either: in college, avoided it because cost, or recently graduated. Considering that, it is unsurprising that it is a major focus.
Also I should add, some bailouts work. Pretty much what people are saying here is "this has gotten out of hand. You need to bail us out so we can effectively participate in society."
Now universities can continue to raise tuition and pay the administrative class even more. Uncle Sam has shown they'll pay it on his dime.
End federal involvement in student loan and allow student loan debt to be discharged in bankruptcy. Problem solved.
The only solution is some form of price controls, presumably by nationalising some universities or competing against them at the federal level.
Put myself through college with some very shiny work and living conditions only to be met with medical debt from a congenital issue later. Can never wrap my head around why America would forgive student debt and not medical debt, especially when the former is always a choice.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
> people who either have made bad decisions, had less fortunate circumstances than others, or a combination of both deserve to live under a mountain of debt for the rest of their life? - No Why does this logic only apply to people who made bad decisions and had less fortunate circumstances or a combination of both only apply to people who did so in the context of taking out student loans? If making bad decisions and…
Student loans should be discharged on personal bankruptcy. All of the other examples you give can be written off like that. Student loans, however, are rarely discharged by judges on those processes.